26 SEPTEMBER 2008

Christchurch NZ has this old European feel about it. The people are so cordial and truly make you feel at home. I thought I would share a little of the interesting language of the area.

Here's some "Kiwi (NZ) Talk”
-"G'day Mate!" (obvious)

-"How're ya going?" (By bus, of course. Not! Means: "How are you doing?")

-“Sweet Asz!” (Just when you think someone has made an inappropriate comment about your seat…you realize that’s impossible these folks are too nice for that…instead it means “Great! Easy going! No Problem!”)

-"Kia ora" ("Hi" in Maori the indigenous Polynesian peoples in NZ. Words run together "kee'yora")

-"Good on ya!" (well done, great, a general exclamation)

-"Ta" (thanks)

-"Tea" (both supper and the cup with it in it)

-"Good as gold" (doing well)

-"Cheers" (bye)

-"Kai" (Maori for food)

-"Haere mai" (Maori for welcome)

-"Hongei" (formal welcome among tribal Maori: man-to-man where each nose meets each forehead and you must feel the breath of the other person, symbolizing two lives and minds meeting)

NZ gov't wanted to make all road signs bi-lingual until some Maori protested. Here are two reasons why. Can you imagine highway signs that translated the following Maori place names (just a sample of many like them):
-"Tutaekuri River (translated in Maori "dog dung" river). What would the kids think as Mom & Dad inform them after Sunday tea they’ll be going for a fun family outing and swim in Tutaekuri this afternoon?

-"Aotearoa" (how the Maori say "New Zealand," which translated means "place of the long white cloud.")
-"Urewera" (is place where an old Maori chief rolled over onto hot coals at campsite one night. Literally translated "place of the singed penis")

Sheep farming is huge in NZ. There is a saying: "rattle your dags!" which means "hurry up!" Thing is, a "dag" can also stand for the tassle of wool beneath a sheep's keester that is all caked up with ... well, you know.

Try to order coffee down here. They’ll make you an espresso or cappuccino. But you say "just a regular coffee." They respond, "what?" You tell them, "coffee with milk, please." They reply, "trim or cream?" You say, "Huh?" Frustrated, you reply: "Can I just get a coffee to go?" They say: "filter?" You say, "what?" When all is said & done, you revert to standard Kiwi & cry: "Darn it, just pour me a tea." To which they reply, "Coming right up, sir."
It's all English, but then again...